Jamie Gajewski – ESL Teacher 365

I was born in Madison, Wisconsin and first fell in love with languages when I started Spanish in middle school. I went on to study Spanish at Madison West High School. For three of my four years, I had the privilege of being in Señora Schilz’s class. Not only did she teach us the verb tenses and vocabulary, but more importantly she shared stories of her adventures abroad.

“Sitting in a Wisconsin classroom opened up the world to me.”

I chose to attend Lawrence University in Appleton, Wisconsin for its teaching program. I majored in Spanish and Education. During my time at Lawrence University, I studied abroad in Granada, Spain, and spent the summer volunteering in Costa Rica thanks to a grant from my university.

Studying abroad in the South of Spain opened my eyes to the rich culture and influence of Northern Africa and I took my first trip to Morocco during my semester abroad. During my senior year, having completed all my graduation requirements, I decided to take Arabic classes.

After graduating, I spent the summer in Costa Rica, this time volunteering with Habitat for Humanity. I came back to complete my student teaching requirement in Wisconsin and found out that I had been selected to study Arabic in Alexandria, Egypt. I would be gone for one year as part of the Rotary Ambassadorial Scholarship program.

In 2010, I set off for my studies in Egypt. In 2011, I evacuated Egypt due to the Egyptian Revolution and continued my scholarship year in Granada, Spain.

After that, I spent the following summers working at English immersion camps in France and teaching English to children during the school year in Madrid, Spain. I completed my Master’s degree in 2012 and worked at three different schools in Madrid over 5 years: a public school, a charter school, and a private American school.

In 2015 I met my partner David on a rugby pitch and in 2016 we moved to Brisbane, Australia where I worked as a Cambridge and general English teacher at a language school. 

In March 2020 I contracted Covid-19 and dealt with debilitating long-haul symptoms. Because I was unable to return to my previous teaching position, I decided to start my blog and dive into the world of online teaching. I haven’t looked back since and have created this blog to share my expertise in teaching abroad and online.

Not long after starting this blog, I started my YouTube channel to help people pursue their dreams of teaching and living abroad or online! I provide information on TEFL certificates, how to teach in specific countries, teach abroad basics and information on how to teach English (or other subjects) online.

In addition, I offer a variety of free guides, free and paid workshops, masterclasses & bootcamps as well as online courses & memberships to teach you everything you need to know about starting your teaching journey. I want to make it as simple as possible to achieve your goal of teaching abroad and/or online!

My Thoughts on Teaching and Learning

My years working, living, and studying abroad have given me new perspectives on education, languages, culture, and life. I am passionate about connecting with others from all over the world and sharing experiences and insights.

If you are looking to take the first step to teach abroad or online, I’m here to help. I love helping people begin their teach abroad or online journeys.

You can always email me at Jamie@eslteacher365.com. 

The world is yours to teach and explore!

Jamie Gajewski